Wednesday, April 29, 2009

one of my girls asked me why I was the one working on this messy house project in saxonburg. i live about 7 miles away. it made me think of the scripture about loving our neighbor. so, who is our neighbor? is it the guy next door, or the lady 2 doors down? or is it the troubled woman 7 miles away? we have to try to help those that the Spirit prompts us to. i don't know if we will be able to help her, but i have to try.

i've talked to sandy (house owner) and she finally called to have a dumpster delivered on friday, so sat. will be the work day- now i have to get the women in the women's club scheduled to work. i went over today when i knew sandy wouldn't be there and took some more shots of the outside-

this is the way to get into the kitchen door- between the garage and the house. there is a very narrow "pathway" that is about 6" wide. i had to stand on a garbage bag when i went last night to talk to her.

car port area

front of house- disabled front door and also these boxes are full of "new" avon stuff- it's been sitting out there for months, at least.

this is as far as her garage door will go down- she cannot get into it as the side door is completely blocked with boxes and garbage. you can imagine how the neighbors and people driving by this main street in saxonburg, feel about this.

Monday, April 27, 2009

i've had some interesting projects lately- one is the trash house in saxonburg (see another post- that's an ongoing one). i will be updating that one in a few days.

another project was my "new" entertainment center- i bought an older wardrobe from a friend last year for $25.00 -with the intention of using it for my tv in the living room- so i could close it up when i'm not using it (thanks shannon and katie). well i left it outside with a tarp on it all summer and when i finally got to it- :o( the doors were warped and the veneer was ruined. it's been in the shed all winter. i remembered the older guy who works in the wood shop at concordia. he actually runs it- he must be in his 80"s- amazing guy! seth helped me take it over and in4 days he was finished- we bought the wood-( beadboard) and he fashioned the most perfect piece and his bill was a whopping $5.00--- WHAT? i gave him $30.00.

i painted it and put a bookcase inside for the tv. paul cut the case down for me. when i put the tv inside- it stuck out too far- ooohhhh - so i took the little handy saw of paul's (where does he get those things, and do they still make them?) and cut the hole in the back larger, shoved the tv back further out of the back and moved the center away from the wall a bit more- make sense? I LOVE IT!! .... just have to get some glass knobs for it. what do you think??

next project- my new dresser- i've been using some rejects from the shop- 2 broken dressers, so when i saw this vintage beauty- i couldn't resist- $39.99 - very heavy, well made, dove- tail drawers- top part opens up to 4 sliding drawers. we think it's made from oak. anyway, of course, i painted it and here it is. it looks so nice in my room.

i've taken several trips to "smokey joe's" in the past few weeks- have purchased some neat items for the shop - garden sale coming up on the 9th of may and my summer open house in june. this is a photo of pat in joe's (we call it that because the owner, janeen, smokes her head off). this place is amazing - a real find for stuff for my shop.

here's a vintage chrome table and 4 chairs that i brought back.

i'll take some more photos of other items and post them later. i'm hoping for a good sales day sat. at "the squirrel" - wish me luck!

i went to her house today and crawled (and i mean that literally) to her front door.

when i found it (the door) i knocked and she yelled "just a minute"- she had to make her way thru the path that i could see inside- "stuff"piled almost to the ceiling! i introduced myself to her and told her i had talked to the women's club pres. and they were willing to come help with the "project". she teared up and i hugged her and told her it would be all right. here are some of our conversation points:

she is trying to get a lawyer so she can get an extension on the 10 days for a cleanup. (apparently 3 years wasn't enough time) .

she doesn't think she needs a dumpster (she needs the large, construction type).

she is diabetic and has an open toe. (what the ...)

she was told that she will be fined $1000.00 if this isn't done in 10 days.

she has gone through alot of the stuff, but needs to go thru it all. she doesn't want people to just throw everything away- willy-nilly.

the boxes are not empty- i felt one it was heavy.

she wants to burn the boxes etc-(major fire with smouldering wet boxes - smoke and angry(er) neighbors). that's why she doesn't think she needs a dumpster.

she hasn't called about the dumpster yet because that takes a lot of time and that's time that she could be going thru her stuff (but isn't).

she had shoulder surgery recently... ???????(and your point is?)

i gave her my number and told her to call me as soon as she got the dumpster committed- told her next tues or thurs. would be good for me. now we'll see if that happens - i may have to take another trip over there in a few days. keep your fingers crossed.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

here's the update on the "welcome saxonburg" story... i received a call from the municipal bld. in saxonburg this am. it seems that the residence in question is not in the saxonburg bourough, but in our township- jefferson. they said they had received many complaints, but couldn't do anything about it. after bugging them for awhile on the phone, i drove back there to get my letter back so that i could take it to the jeff.twn. bld.

i managed to get the name of a woman who supposedly has been trying to work with jeff. twn. to get this cleaned up. nothing much has happened, though, but they did call her while i was there as i asked what the status was .

i then drove to the jeff. twn bld. and the secretary there told me that there was a woman who had been assigned to this problem. i also asked for a copy of the regulations that would pertain to this situation- wow! it really nails the situation- looks like they have just been putting this thing on the back burner.

apparently, there is a lawyer involved - should have been long ago- and he has been working on this. the woman who has been in charge called me twice today- once to tell me that she had visited this residence last week and the owner had agreed to accept help with the mess (she didn't call it that!). i told her that i could get some helpers together, but i would need a pickup truck to haul everything away. she called me back and said that they were going to arrange to have a dumpster delivered in about 2 weeks. she thanked me and said that she would keep me posted , so i think the ball is rolling and i'll be anxious to do another" drive- by" in a few weeks.

i was asked to do the windows of a little shop in town and so that's how i spent the latter part of my day today. i loaded the jeep up with things i thought might look good and spent about2 1/2 hours working there. i had to use some of the owners stuff- which isn't my choice, but it worked out ok...

sorry about the reflections of the houses across the street...

there are 2 windows- this one actually looked pretty neat- but you sure can't tell from the photo- lots of reflections- yuck.

this was a section i did right as you walk into the shop- she wanted blues...

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

i can't stand it anymore- this has been going on for at least 3 years and so i'm taking a stand!

i did a drive-by shooting today and then went to the drugstore to get copies made. these will be sent to the magistrate's office. i don't understand why some residents can't cut a tree down in their beautifully landscaped yard and just 1 mile away- this is and has been happening. i've heard that someone actually lives in this mess- it is 3 houses away from the high school and on the main street in saxonburg, pa. every year this place gets worse- doesn't anyone care?- everyone talks about it- but, that's about it. the pictures don't do it justice.

not too many feet from this disaster is this welcoming sign for the town.....

Thursday, April 16, 2009

i planned a trip to the washington temple last week and this is what really happened:

the snow started late at night and continued throughout the day... :o( not my favorite conditions for driving 4 1/2 hours down and across the state, so i had to postpone my trip. i have been feeling the urgency of attending the temple for several weeks- it's been so long since i've been. conference also spurred me on, soooo, last night, i decided as i got ready for bed, that i would go in the morning no matter what.

what a beautiful day for a trip- but i forgot my camera. i wanted to take some pictures so all of you could see how beautiful it was- and IT WAS!!!! i have never seen the sky so blue as a backdrop to the white and gold spires. it was truly breathtaking. just use your imagination.

the tulips ,daffodils,pansies, and flowering trees were in full bloom. ( washington is in another growing zone and everything happens sooner). they had wire coverings over many of the flowers to keep the deer out- something i had never seen before. i guess i missed the wash. cherry blossoms by a good week and 1/2- or i would have made a side trip to d.c. to see the famous trees.

it took me an extra hour to get there as i took the wrong turn- very frustrating when you're in a bunch of traffic and everyone else seems to know where they are going. i called katie and also stopped and asked 2 total strangers- one was eating in his car and had a mouth full of a hoagie and had to chew it up before he could answer- oh boy!

anyway, i got there about 3:05pm and they told me they only have sessions every hour until 5:00 then it's every half hour, sooo i was able to do some other temple work for about 40 mins. and then went up for a session. beautiful, peaceful place- to be away from the world and its involvements. i got home tonight around 12.00am and am tired, but so glad i was able to take this trip. i will ponder the things i thought about in the temple, tomorrow while i work in my shop and house. i am grateful for my family and friends that give me support in my comings and goings.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

it's been a good day- full of activity centered toward Easter. i left the house at 8:20 so that i could arrange the lilies and pussy willows at the church. finished that in time for choir practice and then sacrament. i was asked to give a talk- actually read scriptures pertaining to Easter and the atoning sacrifice of Jesus . i used a few statements and thoughts from an article in the april ensign, by eric huntsman (pg.52)-- "reflections on the savior's last week". worth your time to look at that. i read mostly from matthew and then john. also from 3nephi when Christ showed himself to the nephites- powerful scriptures of Christ's atoning sacrifice.

iplayed the piano for primary and then went to visit 3 ladies and drop off easter baskets. i arrived home at 3:00 and was more than tired- luckily i had put the ham in the timer oven, so it was cooked when i got home. i put cottage potatoes together last night, so just threw those in the oven and worked on brussel sprouts and carrots. katie was bringing refreshing jello and pineapple salad and i had made a bunny cake last night (copied from nella's pattern- hers was cuter!).

i used my grandma steele's dishes- (i only use them for Easter). she painted them many years ago and i just love them- they remind me of her.

seth drove to my mom's and brought her back for dinner. nate, katie and josie came also. we had a mini egg hunt in the back yard before we ate. katie has photos on that- so cute!

dinner was good- nice conversations and the highlight for josie-- THE BUNNY CAKE, which she ate with such gusto- it cracked us up. this is a shot of it when we were through...

paul gave her a little white dog and she loved that and then everyone was ready to depart.

can you say "overwhelmed?"......

i turned my "consider the lilies" up and got to work. 1/2 hour later i was finished.

yes, that's the same table you just saw!

the dishes were put away for another year, my robe went on and here i am! another Easter- a lovely time of the year and another fine day.

today was one fine day. josie (aka the juice) came to granny's for the day as her mom had to work at the vet office. a full day was planned- well, kind of. when you're 2 years old things are very flexible.

we began by trying to decide which toys and non-toy things "we" would play with first. many things (and i stress many) were chosen and then quickly abandoned.

it was now time for the main event of the day- coloring easter eggs. katie had brought over some egg-coloring cups, so we began choosing the colors and dropping the tablets into the vinegar.

much smelling and almost tasting was done at this point. josie soon got the hang of it and the eggs went in at an amazing speed- (i might say too fast- many were dropped in and cracks were heard.)

our finished product!

we next started some laundry and of course that's where the piano is, sssooo...

the shopping cart was always a hit with all my kids and also the grandkids. reilly and ellie get very competitive over who will use it first- josie is sole owner of it when no one else is around!

i didn't get a photo of lunch, but we ate in the living room- yes, you heard that right! the table was still under repair after the egg fiasco-whoops, activity, so we pulled chairs up to the coffee table and ate pb and j and yogurt there. a trip behind the chair and, ah-ha, it was time to change a diaper :o(. (where's that elmo potty chair when you need it?)

we were then off to the apartment where a nap was had while cookies were baked, and the quiet was enjoyed. a trip back to granny's house and before we knew it- our time together was over. all in all a fun, semi productive day. 'til next time....

About Me

i never have thought much "about me" so this is an interesting experience. i have simple likes. i love to watch people and animals. i enjoy reading and also teaching in various church callings. i have 6 children- 5 i have raised and the oldest i didn't know until he was 21(adoption situation). i loved being a mom to my kids and found it challenging and rewarding- especially since i see them now as adults.i like to draw,knit, cook, garden and spend time with different friends.my faith has always been an important part of my life and gotten me through the various challenges i have faced.
i have a little collectibles shop "red squirrel" that i totally love- my daughters convinced me to build this. it's been a creative outlet and an
opportunity to meet many new friends in the past 5 years- i love to travel- especially to visit my kids or friends.i would consider myself a creative person who enjoys doing things for others especially if they are in need. i have been blessed with good health and a good life.